Captain Ed is a father and grandfather living in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota, a native Californian who moved to the North Star State because of the weather. He lives with his wife Marcia, also known as the First Mate, their two dogs, and frequently watch their granddaughter Kayla, whom Captain Ed calls The Little Admiral... [read more]

The NEA published its agenda for its July 7th Assembly, listing all the new action items under consideration and the action taken on each. How long does one have to read down the list before the NEA actually addresses an issue having directly to do with educating students? The first item? Third? Fifth?

How about ... fifteenth?

Here's what comes ahead of education at the National Education Association:

1. [Defeated, no description]
2. Fighting Wal-Mart
3. Investigating the positions of financial firms regarding Social Security privatization
4. Adding "multiethnic" and "other" as options on ethnicity questions
5. Celebrating the 40th anniversary of the NEA and ATA
6. Forming coalitions to "protect" Social Security
7. Explaining the difference between two different pension plans
8. Requesting an article for their newsletter on "health problems from exposure to fragrance chemicals".
9. Getting outside funding to allow 25 more people to attent the EPA Tools for Schools Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Symposium
10. Creating a workgroup on health care
11. Sponsoring "political training" for Congressional candidates friendly to NEA priorities (see above!)
12. [Defeated, no description]
13. Opposing "billionaire Eli Broad and any other entities to remove elected school boards from cities"
14. Repealing the Social Security offset and explaining the differences between states' approach to Social Security for teachers who move

Five of the top 20 have to do with Social Security politics. Only two items in the top 30 have anything directly to do with educating children. As Michelle Malkin points out, however, they made room during their efforts to demand a withdrawal from Iraq (number 61), oppose CAFTA, (number 63), and support the boycott of Gallo Wines (number 47).

If I wanted to parody the NEA, I couldn't draft a better list than this. Anyone arguing that this special-interest group has the welfare of children as its first priority should read this list carefully and often.

Trackback Pings

» Education Priorities from The Loudest Cricket
Hey, at least the teacher union, NEA, was thinking about education, but they have more important things to do. Like protect Social Security, fight Wal-Mart, protect Social Security, celebrate the 40th anniversary of the NEA and ATA, protect Social Secu... [Read More]

» NEA: Lots of Whine, but No Wine from Alpine Summit
So, the question is, what does this have to do with the NEA? The only reason I can think of is that it's jut one union trying to help another union because it certainly has nothing to do with educating children... at least on anything they're suppose... [Read More]

» NEA: Left and Loving It! from Obviously Right
The Left runs America's schools as political indoctrination centers. They are more concerned with Leftist politics than actual education. This is shameless political partisanship and the failures of America's schools can be laid at the foot of Libe... [Read More]

Tracked on July 13, 2005 6:54 PM

» NEA's Convention Wrap-Up: Fun And Frolic In L.A. from The Education Wonks
Like many California public school teachers, I'm forced to pay monies to both the National Education Association and The California Teachers Association. Next year, the combined total taken out of my paycheck will be $910. This amount has increased e... [Read More]

Tracked on July 13, 2005 9:59 PM

» NEA from Mistakes Were Made
But the NEA is obviously rotten to the very core. [Read More]